FBI captures escaped Ohio inmate in Louisville, 2 arrested for helping him

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- An escaped inmate from an Ohio prison was arrested Monday night in Louisville by the FBI.

Jerry Lee Cooper, 48, escaped the Brown County Detention Center in Georgetown, Ohio, on Sept. 15. He was being held while awaiting a trial for his alleged role in a murder-for-hire plot.

According to the FBI Louisville, Cooper and an accomplice broke through a window in the detention center, went to the Ohio River, stole a boat and traveled to Dover, Kentucky. The initial alert from federal authorities said Cooper should be considered armed and dangerous.

WILLIAM and MARLANA Strausbaugh - COURTESY MASON COUNTY JAIL MAYSVILLE KY.jpg — William (left) and Marlana (right) Strausbaugh. Images courtesy Mason County Jail in Maysville, Ky. Sept. 22, 2025

Two people are facing federal charges for allegedly helping Cooper on the run. According to the Mason County Sheriff's Office in Maysville, Kentucky, Marlana Strausbaugh, 46, and William Strausbaugh, 48, picked Cooper up and took him to Louisville.

William Strausbaugh faces charges of excessive windshield/window tinting, hindering prosecution or apprehension second degree and escape second degree. Marlana Strausbaugh faces charges of hindering prosecution or apprehension second degree and escape second degree. Both could face additional federal charges.

Cooper is being held in the Oldham County Detention Center, which is customary for inmates facing federal charges. His updated mugshot shows he has shaved his head since escaping the jail in Ohio. He was scheduled to be in court in Louisville on Tuesday morning.

He faces an escape charge in Ohio along with his original charges from April 2025 of attempted murder, conspiracy, felonious assault, tampering with evidence.

FBI Louisville was also assisted by Kentucky State Police, Louisville Metro Police and the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office in Cooper's capture.

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